Undisclosed Desires
by theLOSTpassenger
Summary: During a scavenger hunt designed to take Hogwarts' students' minds off the previous year's troubles involving the Ministry of Magic, Ronald Weasley discovers something about his best friend Harry Potter that deeply troubles him. WARNING: This story contains material that is sexually and violently graphic in nature, which could be disturbing to some readers.
1. Prologue

Harry had been at Hogwarts for a little more than a week and was feeling nothing but sheer excitement. It was all very strange and new to him, the professors and their seemingly strange attire; the concept of magic and the fact that he, himself, the ever so boring and ordinary Harry Potter, was a wizard; and, of course, the Hogwarts castle itself, perhaps the very opposite of his suburban home, if it could, in fact, be called a home.

At the moment, however, none of these thoughts were at the forefront of Harry's mind. At the moment, he sat next to the red-haired Ronald Weasley as they did their best to listen intently to Professor Quirrell stutter through his lecture. He had only known Ron for about a week or so and already felt a strong attachment to the boy, a feeling that was stronger than anything that he had ever felt in his life before. Ron was his best friend; he had inherently known that the moment when they first spoke to each other. Ron was basically the first person who made him feel comfortable in his new life.

It wasn't always easy to pay attention to Professor Quirrell. His constant stuttering didn't make for the most entertaining lectures. It was almost as bad as Professor Snape's drawl, maybe even worse. On this particular day, however, Professor Quirrell had his attention. Quirrell was spending the majority of that day's lecture talking about dangerous magical creatures about which anyone who inhabited and was aware of the magical world should be wary. Quirrell had just finished running through several creatures when he got to speaking about the Doppelganger. Quirrell said that Doppelgangers were non-corporeal beings that temporarily invaded the body of a host, unbeknownst to the host, long enough to create a duplicate.

"The d-d-duplicate is n-n-n-nearly ident-t-t-ical to the host," Quirrell explained, "except that the host's d-d-deepest's desires are amplified. Inh-h-h-hibition is n-n-n-no longer a factor."

Intrigued, Harry raised his hand.

"Yes, M-M-Mr. P-P-Potter?"

"Professor," Harry asked, a bit alarmed, "you mentioned the host's deepest desires. Would this include desires that the person keeps... hidden?"

Professor Quirrell paused before responding. indicatively slightly agitated. "Yes, Mr. P-P-Potter," he replied, his lips pressed into a thin line. "As I said, there w-w-would be no inhib-b-bition. Of c-c-course, most have c-c-come to an ag-g-greement that the D-D-Doppelganger is nothing more than m-m-myth."

Harry looked downward, attempting to avoid the gaze of his closest male friend. So many thoughts crept across his mind, but after that day, it would be several years before he ever paid the Doppelganger any mind.


	2. Chapter 1

FIVE YEARS LATER

Orange sunlight shone through the window of Harry's dormitory, bringing him a sense of joy. School had only been in session for a few weeks, but the grounds of Hogwarts had been burdened with a long stretch of depressive, cloudy days that had clouded not only the skies but many students' spirits. Of course, after such a terrible year the year prior, with the school essentially having been under the nefarious (a kind word) Dolores Umbridge's rule, a strong sense of trepidation was to be expected.

Harry was looking forward to today. Perhaps because of last year's strife, many of the professors had gotten together and planned some weekend festivals and games for students to partake in. This particular Saturday's plan was a scavenger hunt. The participants were paired up into partnerships and were able to choose their partners, and Harry and Ron, who had both wanted to participate, had chosen each other as partners. There were four teams, one for each house, and each partnership was given a divided part of the list. The house to find the most items by 5:00 that evening would be the winner and would be awarded fifty house points.

Harry got out of bed, got dressed, and went to breakfast in the Great Hall. He found Hermione there and sat with her. The two of them engaged in a chat as they ate.

"Have you seen Ron this morning?" Hermione asked, adjusting the cowl of her pink sweater.

Harry shook his head. "No," he replied softly, "but you know how Ron is. He will probably sleep until the last possible minute before the scavenger hunt."

Hermione nodded. "That's certainly true," she said with a pause. "When does that start?"

"10," Harry responded.

"He will be up no earlier than 9:30, then," Hermione said with a light, wry chuckle. "In fact, I'd recommend waking him up yourself if I were you."

"I'm still really disappointed that you aren't participating," Harry said to her. "Gryffindor could really use your..." Harry struggled to find the right word, and after a few seconds of silence, Hermione glared at him expectantly. "...knowledge," he said finally.

"I have already told you," Hermione said, sighing. "There are much more important affairs about which to be concerned. These games are silly, if you ask me."

Hermione had, indeed, already told Harry, and if Harry was being honest with himself, then he would have to admit that he had expected as much from her, anyway. Hermione was always the practical one of the trio. Rarely was she interested in pursuing an adventure unless it served some greater (especially academic) purpose. Harry also had to admit, however, that he had also expected Hermione to be understanding of the school's desire for release. She probably wanted it, too, but one of her strongest traits had always been her ability to circumvent her desires and focus on the necessities.

After Harry finished his breakfast, he gave Hermione half of a smile and stood up from the table, where Hermione was still seated finishing her own breakfast. "Well, it isn't too late to change your mind," he said slowly. "You know where we'll be."

Harry knew that she wouldn't come, though. He didn't expect to see her until after the event had finished.


	3. Chapter 2

Ronald Weasley groaned as he awoke, knowing that he had to get out of his warm, comfy bed, momentarily regretting his decision to participate in this event. Saturday was, after all, supposed to be a day to sleep in. Hermione had been smart. Then again, Ron reasoned, Hermione was probably already up and ready to spend a majority of the day studying and staying on top of, if not ahead of, her classes. That was typical of Hermione.

After finally getting out of bed, though, Ron was fully awake after a few minutes. He grabbed breakfast and then headed outside to meet up with Harry. Ron saw Hagrid at the center of what must have been about 100 students, among whom he spotted Harry after a few seconds. Harry grinned when he spotted Ron heading his way, and Ron immediately noticed that something seemed... off about Harry. Something seemed different, but he couldn't really place what it was. Ron's mouth contorted a bit as he ruminated, trying to decide what was different about his best friend. Something about his eyes, perhaps?

"Ron!" Harry cried, more enthusiastically than usual. Harry then leaned in close to Ron and hugged him tightly.

Taken aback, Ron's face once again twisted in confusion. "Uh... it's nice to see you, too, Harry. What's gotten into you?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm just happy to see you, Ron."

Ron reluctantly nodded. He didn't necessarily mind the hug from one of his closest companions, but it was unusual. It wasn't like he and Harry regularly hugged. Harry was acting as if he had gone many months without having seen Ron, or as if it would be many months until he would see him again. He had been right when he had first seen Harry only moments before; Harry was different.

Ron had had no idea how to respond at the moment, however, so he decided to let it slide for the time being. He knew that once the competition was over and he and Harry were alone, he would have the opportunity to further question Harry's behavior then.

"All right, then," Hagrid's loud, gruff voice rang out, interrupting Ron's thoughts, "it looks like yer all here. Let's get started then. As ya all know, today's challenge is the scavenger hunt. Each pair will get a part of yer house's list. At the end of the competition, the house that found the most items will be the winner."

The kind and gentle half-giant proceeded to hand out lists to pairs. Once he checked with the large group to make sure that everyone understood, he declared that the challenge had commenced.

Ron smiled with satisfaction. Gone were the thoughts on his mind when he had first awakened. He now felt an overwhelming thirst for adventure.


	4. Chapter 3

Ron and Harry paired off and went their own way farther down the field where they had met Hagrid. There were a couple of minutes of awkward silence between them, as Ron was unsure of how to respond to Harry's strange behavior. Ron eventually broke the silence by awkwardly murmuring, "This should be fun, eh?"

Harry grinned. "I hope so."

Ron picked up on a strange intonation that he had never really noticed hearing in Harry's voice before. He couldn't quite place it. Even around one of his two closest friends, he still felt exceedingly awkward. He could normally easily communicate with Harry (save an incident the year before last), but this didn't seem to be Harry. Ron couldn't explain it.

He decided to do his best to surpass his trepidation. "Harry," Ron said rather softly, "why are you acting so... strange?"

Harry seemed genuinely taken aback. "That's the second time that you've asked me that, Ron," Harry said. "Have I done or said something to offend you?"

"No," Ron replied, shaking his head fervently. "No, you haven't. You just don't seem yourself."

"I'm fine," Harry said noncommittally and then added, "In fact, I am more than fine."

Ron once again decided to let the matter go for the time being and move on. He pulled the rolled parchment that Hagrid had handed them out of the left side pocket of his khaki shorts and untied the ribbon that kept it rolled. He unrolled the paper and held it out in front of him so that Harry could see it, too. Harry leaned in close to Ron and took a gander at the paper.

"Pewter size 2 cauldron, silver key, floo powder, golden snitch, pack of self-shuffling playing cards, revealer, and wooden goblet," Ron said slowly, reading the items from the list. "Who comes up with these lists?"

Harry shrugged as he slowly backed away from Ron. "Probably someone who doesn't have anything better to do than to dictate our lives by writing them."

Such humor was not all that typical from Harry, but Ron had to laugh. Even if it wasn't necessarily something that Harry would normally say, it was still funny. All the same, however, Ron found himself missing Hermione and wishing that she had been participating in this event. Hermione, too, would very likely recognize that something was drastically and alarmingly different about Harry, and she would very likely have a considerably good idea of how to deal with it.


	5. Chapter 4

Hogwarts students participating in the event were allowed to explore nearly the entire campus freely to search for items on their scavenger lists. Approximately an hour into the game, Ron and Harry had approached a small pond on the Hogwarts campus, close to its perimeter but not yet off the grounds.

"I don't remember this pond being here, do you?" Ron asked Harry.

"No, I can't say that I do," Harry responded with a shrug.

"I am trying to decide whether or not it would be a good idea to go near it," Ron said, staring at the water. "It must be some sort of enchantment."

Harry said nothing. When Ron looked to his left to look at his friend, he took note that Harry was scarcely even paying attention to him. Harry seemed completely absent from the world, lost deeply in some sort of foreign thought. It was apparently a pleasant one, as a wide smile was spread across his face.

"Harry?" Ron called softly to him.

Harry did not respond.

"Harry?" Ron called again, louder this time.

Harry still did not respond.

"HARRY!" Ron shouted.

Harry finally snapped out of his reverie, startled by Ron's shouting. He blinked his eyes a few times and then firmly set a gaze upon Ron.

"What?!" he snapped.

Ron's body stiffened, and he turned so that his entire body was facing Harry, his hands now clenched into tight fists.

"All right, that's it!" Ron angrily cried. "I have had enough of this. What in the world has gotten into you?"

"I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about, Ron," Harry replied with apparent amusement. "Quite honestly, it's _you_ who are acting strangely, constantly questioning what has gotten into me, when the truth is that I simply want something in you."

Ron's facial expression contorted into one that expressed utter confusion. "What in bloody hell are you talking about?"

Harry aggressively approached Ron, with Ron walking backwards with each step that Harry took toward him.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," Harry snarled. "You can't tell me that every single hint that was dropped, that every single advancement that was made, that every single bloody rejection _went unnoticed_!"

Harry continued to advance toward Ron, and Ron began to get really nervous as he realized that he was quickly approaching the pond. "Harry, seriously," he cried desperately, "I really don't know what you're talking about."

By that point, the pond was merely five or so inches behind Ron, and Ron was become exceedingly fearful. He wasn't really aquaphobic, but he had a feeling that the pond was an enchantment designed to act as some sort of obstacle for the scavenger hunt.

"I suppose that you wouldn't," Harry said softly. "This shouldn't surprise me."

Ron relaxed as Harry visibly and tonally calmed down. He took a deep sigh of relief, expecting that Harry would finally explain his nonsensical behavior and words.

He instead felt Harry's hand strike hard against his chest, causing Ron to fall backwards directly into the water. Within a mere second or two, he felt surrounded by cold water with the pain of a sharp sting on the right side of his neck which then began to permeate the rest of his body.


	6. Chapter 5

Ron's instinct was to cry out for help, to cry out for Harry to jump in and rescue him, but he fought the instinct, for such an attempt would mean water in his lungs. The pond was much deeper than it had seemed from above. He kicked his feet, desperately trying to swim upward, but his body was weak and in pain from whatever had stung his neck. His mind began to race in panic.

 _Why isn't Harry trying to save me?_ he thought frantically. _I'm going to die. I'm going to die._

Just then, however, Ron saw and felt Harry plunge into the water, stripped to his underwear. Harry swam downward, reaching his arms out to try to reach for Ron. Ron was sinking until he finally hit the floor of the pond, and Harry quickly followed. With a struggle, he managed to pull Ron toward the surface and get him to land. Ron was weak but was conscious and alert, gasping for air.

"I'm sorry, Ron," Harry said sincerely. "I certainly wasn't trying to kill you."

Lying on the grassy ground on his back, Ron said nothing, as he was continuing to gasp for air. Harry could see that Ron was shivering from the cold water, so he quickly removed Ron's shirt, figuring that he would warm up faster exposed directly to the warm autumn air. At that moment, however, at the sight of Ron's pink nipples set against his pale white torso, Harry was overcome by a savage, primal hunger, one that he was entirely unable to resist. He, in fact, did not even have a desire to resist it. He knew that what he was about to do was wrong, but that was of no concern to him. His only concern came from knowing that his dear friend was probably not going to enjoy what was about to happen. He loved his friend dearly, but that wasn't going to change his friend's fate.

"I'm sorry, Ron," Harry repeated, muttering almost under his breath.

"Harry?" Ron managed weakly as Harry unbuttoned and unzipped Ron's khakis, "What are you doing?"

Harry pulled Ron's khakis down to just above his knees and rolled him over so that Ron was facing the ground.

"I really am sorry, Ron," Harry said, mounting his friend, "but this is going to happen." He had already been excited, but at the sight of Ron's bare white ass underneath him and at the thought that this was finally about to happen, he became fully erect.

"No," Ron moaned. "No, Harry. Please, stop. No."

Harry did not listen, though. He ran his hands through Ron's soft ginger hair and looked up at the sky, feeling like a god, before feeling a magnificently powerful pain on the back of his head. He fell to the ground, and the world spun for a few short seconds before it turned pitch black.


	7. Epilogue

Harry woke up slowly, his eyes gradually adjusting to the sunlight coming in through the windows of what he soon realized was the Hospital Wing. Even though he was lying down, he felt dizzy, his head spinning. After a few moments, the shape of a man came into focus near his bed. The man, who had long white hair and an even longer white beard, was sitting in a chair adjacent to his bed, wearing long blue robes and half-moon spectacles.

"Professor Dumbledore," Harry said weakly and quietly.

"Hello, Harry," Dumbledore replied with a warm, welcoming grin.

"Why am I here?" Harry asked suddenly. "What happened? I have had the most disturbing dream, and it felt _so_ real, more like a memory -"

"That's because it _is_ a memory, Harry," Dumbledore corrected rather morosely, holding his right hand up to tell Harry to slow down.

Harry shook his head, slowly at first but then more fervently. "No," he said in horror. "No. No. No. You're telling me that I tried to... sexually assault my best friend?"

"What you remember having happened," Dumbledore explained, " _did_ happen, and you _did_ do it, but you also did _not_ do it."

Harry's eyes contorted in bewilderment. "I... I don't understand. Professor, I would never -"

"You are correct," Dumbledore said softly, interrupting Harry again. " _You_ would never, but your deepest, darkest desires _would_."

Harry let out a small gasp, and his eyes went wide.

 _The host's deepest desires are amplified. Inhibition is no longer a factor._

Harry gulped. "I remember..." he said, his voice shaky. "I remember something about a... a..."

"A Doppelganger, yes," Dumbledore finished for him. "You were unconscious in your bed the entire time while a Doppelganger conducted its nasty business."

"Ronald didn't even notice you in your bed, half-asleep he was," piped Madame Pomfrey from across the room.

"Dreadful, evil creatures they are, Doppelgangers," Dumbledore continued, "taking pleasure in wreaking havoc, ruining friendships and relationships, but you haven't a thing about which to worry, Harry, for Ronald, Hermione, and soon you will have no memory of this ever having happened. We will see to that."

"Hermione?" Harry interjected. "What does _she_ have to do with this?"

Madame Pomfrey approached Harry's bed and held a hand to the back of her head. "Surely you remember taking quite a blow to the back of your head, Mr. Potter? That was your friend Hermione."

"It seems that a Doppelganger got to her, as well," Dumbledore explained. "Instead of remaining in the castle as she had planned, she took a nap in the library while her Doppelganger decided to join you in the scavenger hunt. When she saw what was happening, she took action."

Harry nodded, doing his best to conceal his horror at what had happened. He looked forward to the spell or potion or whatever it was that would be done to relieve his mind of the memory.

"When can I see Ron?" Harry asked after a few moments.

"It's best that you not see him until we remove your memory of what happened," Madame Pomfrey replied with a curt nod. "Besides, Ronald is in recovery. The poor boy took a nasty sting from a venomous water creature and nearly drowned."

Harry cringed. Madame Pomfrey's tone sounded almost accusatory, like she was blaming Harry for Ron's injuries.

"The pond and the water creature were most likely created by the Doppelgangers," Dumbledore further explained. "As I said, abhorrent creatures. Fortunately, they've returned to their plane... for now."

Dumbledore began to stand from the chair, and Madame Pomfrey left the room, assumably, Harry determined, tending to patients in other rooms, patients such as Ron.

"Professor?"

"Yes, Harry?" Dumbledore replied.

"Did Gryffindor at least win the competition?"

"Oh, no," Dumbledore said, letting out a small chuckle. "No, I am afraid that the game was awarded to Hufflepuff."

Harry frowned in disappointment. As Dumbledore turned to leave the room, he realized that there was one more question that he needed answered.

"Professor?" he called as Dumbledore approached the door.

"Yes, Harry?" he replied, his eyebrows raised in inquiry.

"While I was the Doppelganger, or... while the Doppelganger was me, Ron was all I could think about. I wanted him romantically, sexually. I had no control. Since the Doppelganger reveals our deepest desires, does this mean that I desire... that I desire Ron?"

Dumbledore hesitated before answering, letting out a soft sigh before responding. "The Doppelgangers are nefarious creatures, indeed, having the ability even to create matter, as they did with the water and the creature that attacked Ronald, but they've never been known to create desires, only amplify them. However, as I told you several years ago in regards to the Mirror of Irised, desires can be quite dangerous. That's why the Doppelgangers use them against us. It is best to, as much as we can, keep our deepest, most desperate desires... undisclosed."

Harry nodded and dozed off to sleep after a few minutes. He then awoke in his bed, having had no memory of the entire event, as Dumbledore had promised.


End file.
